OppenheimerFunds Gains 529 Access With Partnership

State Street Investments' 529 college savings business, Schoolhouse Capital, has partnered with OppenheimerFunds on its 529 plan and will begin distributing the plan through OppenheimerFunds' Distributor network later this year, the companies announced last week. The plan will feature investment products from both firms.

Schoolhouse Capital currently administers New Mexico's 529 college savings plan and distributes it to retail investors directly through E*Trade and employer work sites.

Earlier this summer, Schoolhouse added A shares to its college savings plan to encourage advisor sales. The shares carry a front-end load of 3.5% and a 25 basis point trailer for brokers. A Schoolhouse spokeswoman declined to comment on how much in assets Schoolhouse Capital has under management.

Schoolhouse Capital's 529 plan offers two different investment options. An age-based option has five different investment portfolios and automatically reallocates assets from aggressive to conservative portfolios as the beneficiary approaches the age at which they will likely attend college. A self-directed option provides eight different investment portfolios.

The existing portfolios are funds of funds based on nine products provided by Janus, Invesco, MFS and SsgA.